Russian Culture Ministry has not received Polish demands to return 7 works of art from Moscow museum

MOSCOW. Sept 15 (Interfax) - The Russian Culture Ministry has not received any demands from Poland seeking the return of seven works of art that were brought from Polish territory to the Soviet Union during World War II and are today displayed at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow.

"The Culture Ministry of Russia has not so far received official claims from Poland in line with the procedure established by law regarding these earlier relocated cultural valuables," a ministry spokesperson told reporters.

The conditions for handing over earlier relocated cultural valuables to any states concerned are regulated by the Russian federal law on cultural valuables brought to the Soviet Union as a result of World War II and which are currently in the territory of the Russian Federation, the spokesperson said.

"These kinds of valuables belongs to a special category, as they were transported to the territory of the Soviet Union as restitution to compensate for the actions of Nazi Germany and its allies during the Great Patriotic War," he said.

Media outlets reported earlier that the Polish Foreign Ministry had sent a note to the Russian embassy demanding the return of seven works of art that were brought from Poland to the Soviet Union during World War II and are today on display at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow.

Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Piotr Wawrzyk said that "on September 12 this year, the Russian embassy was given a note on this matter with documents based on those handed over to us by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage."